


close quarters

by jhoca



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Dubious Consent, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Masturbation, Pining, Roommates, Sharing a Room, Zuko is an Awkward Turtleduck, dubcon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-27
Packaged: 2020-03-09 18:02:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18922231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jhoca/pseuds/jhoca
Summary: Zuko and Sokka share a tent.A fic where the Gaang has to share tents, Zuko is a teenage boy with raging hormones, Sokka sleeps inches away from him, and Zuko is uncomfortably aroused by it.





	1. guilty pleasure

**Author's Note:**

> Remember that time Zuko walked into Sokka’s tent and he was dressed down, hair down, surrounded by petals and candles? Yeah, the setting of this fic is around that time
> 
> (I crave Zukka fics and my thirst is unquenchable...also, when I first wrote this I was really fascinated by the idea that Sokka was a “responsible boy” who cleaned up after himself, woke up early, especially since it was only him and Katara growing up together? And as the older brother, he’d be more...inclined to be responsible?? idk man...I wrote this a long time ago and now I thoroughly believe Sokka stretches and takes up every inch of space when he sleeps, snores loudly, and overall, a loud roommate...but that’s not the case here lmao Just think of this fic as Sokka, in a different light. Sokka, at a different angle. Sokka is multidimensional, after all!)
> 
> Talk zukka with me on [ tumblr](http://jhoca.tumblr.com/) or on my [nsfw tumblr blog](http://jhoca-nsfw.tumblr.com/) or on [twitter](https://twitter.com/jhocaaaa) or on [instagram](https://www.instagram.com/jhocaaa/)...it’s a small boat...the S.S. Zukka...SOS

Zuko and Sokka shared a tent.

Their ragtag team had left the Western Air Temple in a spur of desperate urgency. In their frantic efforts to escape Azula and her fleet of Fire Nation war balloons, they had weighed their options and decided to ditch their supplies, which would have been more weight for Appa to carry anyway. In a fight-or-flight situation such as that, tents were trivial. And so upon nightfall, unsurprisingly, there weren’t enough tents for everyone.

Everyone had to share a tent with another person, and somehow the arrangement they’d agreed upon involved Sokka and Zuko in one tent. Suki and Katara shared another tent, and Aang was supposed to share the last tent with Toph, but she had insisted on sleeping in one of her signature rock teepees instead.

Still, that decision could have easily saved Zuko the trouble of his current living situation. Of course, having lived together with his uncle roaming the world in search for the Avatar, these shared living conditions were nothing new to him. However, it was with _whom_ he was sharing the tent with that was the source of a growing list of problems.

Sokka.

Now, contrary to popular belief, Sokka was actually a rather peaceful sleeper, unlike what Zuko had initially expected of him — there was no obnoxious snoring, no sleep talking, no flailing or kicking, no sleepwalking, nothing of the sort. In fact, Sokka was surprisingly pleasant. There was nothing wrong with sharing a tent with Sokka, already a far better roommate than his uncle, who snored loudly enough to keep Zuko up for hours and left a strong, unpleasant odor lingering in their shared living space. _Sokka_ didn’t smell. _Sokka_ didn’t snore. In fact, he would even clean up after himself, and he didn’t leave his belongings scattered about in a mess. Maybe on the rare occasion, Sokka would sometimes misplace a scroll or map, but it was never anything terribly bad, and they could usually find it again, easily.

If Sokka made such a wonderful roommate, what was the problem?

The things that Zuko had an issue with were more subtle. Honestly, everything that bothered him was really nothing at all, just passing glimpses, just mundane things, just anything and everything. Maybe it was this all-encompassing aspect about it that peeved Zuko more than anything else — sharing living quarters with Sokka made Zuko hyper aware of everything about the Water Tribe boy. Things Zuko never noticed before, details about him that usually went by unnoticed and unimportant, everything about Sokka was oddly…fascinating.

And that bothered Zuko to no end.

 _Sokka._ How he slept: hair freed from his usual wolftail, loose strands framing his face and blue eyes, his chest rising and falling steadily, his breathing natural and rhythmic. How he got dressed in the morning — Sokka was surprisingly an early riser — and how Zuko would sometimes be greeted in the morning by a half naked Sokka slipping into his blue robes, carefully binding his wrists with those white strips. Of course, Sokka was always turned away as he got dressed, but Zuko, still lying in bed with his eyes secretly cracked open, could catch him in this light. The morning, filtering through the tent’s littlest holes, dust particles catching on the sunlight, seemed to illuminate the boy perfectly.

Zuko was captivated to see Sokka like this, so unlike his usual self, so raw and bare — his slim frame and shoulders, how the curve of his spine flowed smoothly all the way down to his waist. Zuko never realized how much he liked following the little grooves of that spine, how much his eyes loved to trace over the slightest dips and curves in Sokka’s lithe body.

And while Zuko continued this guilty pleasure habit of his, Sokka remained quiet, being mindful and respectful of the boy still “sleeping” beside him. The sunrise of dawn was always dim, the light muffled behind the fabric of their tent, just barely peeking through the slits. Still, it bathed Sokka in such a flattering light, hitting him in all the right places. Maybe it was because every time Zuko fluttered his eyes awake, his sight still blurry from slumber, he wasn’t seeing clearly.

But the thing was, Zuko _was_ seeing clearly. Sokka just looked different, somehow.

One morning, as Zuko finished his morning meditation and sun salutations, greeting the sunrise with outstretched hands and feeling the fire breathe inside his chest, Sokka had emerged from their tent all ready to go. It was then that curiosity finally pushed Zuko to ask Sokka why he occasionally woke up so early, since it seemed so unlike him. With a smirk, Zuko admitted, “Your sister told me she would always whip your face with water, or throw a snowball at you to wake you up.”

“Katara only ever tells her side of the story,” Sokka snorted and rolled his eyes, a knowing smile on his lips. “You’ve got a younger sister, too. I’m sure she doesn’t make you out to be the better sibling when she tells stories.”

“That’s true.” Zuko grimaced.

Sokka softened. “When we were younger, before Katara was the one nagging me, it was the other way around. We had to grow up a lot faster ever since the raid at the South Pole. I was older than her, so I thought I was just…looking out for her. Waking up early to stoke the fire and get breakfast started, stuff like that.”

With a pause, Sokka breathed in the crisp morning air and took in the rising sun.

“And it’s not like we were completely alone. Gran-gran was there too, so that helped. She raised us, and I guess, we raised each other…just a little bit.” Another pause. “At some point, Katara started waking up earlier than me, and I didn’t think I needed to be that nagging older brother anymore. It’s...maturity, I guess? I don’t know, I’m sure she doesn’t mention any of that when she tells you all the times she’s lashed cold water at my face.”

“No, she doesn’t.” Zuko made a small smile. Reassuring.

Beyond them, the sun rose and painted the cold sky with warm light. Sokka shrugged and smiled back at him. “She doesn’t need to.”

The soft glow of orange on Sokka’s tan skin, like sun drops on his cheeks, bloomed with warmth in Zuko’s chest. There was something ethereal about mornings with Sokka, that the sun was greeting them and Sokka was greeting it back, and Zuko could only watch in awe of it all.

At night and especially in the evenings, after Sokka returned from washing himself, he would come into their tent a skinny silhouette, dripping with river water that would trickle down his arms and fall on their blankets. He would always apologize for it, a sheepish grin on his face.

The dim lighting from the moon, dark and blue, was somehow just as flattering on Sokka as the bright orange sunrise. And that scrawny body of his would always scramble ungracefully on top of his bed spread, clamoring about how good it felt to be clean. No matter how childish or clumsy Sokka acted — his typical behavior — Zuko found himself drawn to it all.

Interestingly, Sokka always went to bed in only his undergarments. On colder nights, he would usually throw on his Water Tribe robes, but refuse to wear any pants or wrappings.

“Why are you always fully dressed when you go to bed? Don’t you sweat like crazy under all those layers?” Sokka had asked him once, an incredulous look on his face.

Zuko had answered with a shrug, “It’s never this cold where I’m from.”

With a perked eyebrow, perhaps in disbelief, Sokka scoffed and laughed. “For a _jerkbender_ , you sure are bad at keeping warm.”

It filled Zuko with a kind of resigned satisfaction, or some kind of weird guilty pleasure from that silly nickname — jerkbender. It was an ongoing joke between them, all the malice and derogatory intent behind it having basically vanished at this point. Now, it was playful, a silly word twinkling with mischief. And Zuko almost looked forward to getting called a _jerkbender_ by Sokka, because he knew a playful smile would grace those lips soon afterwards, and their eyes would meet, an unspoken understanding between them.

Now, after a few days of recuperation and collecting their bearings, helping Katara on her mission to avenge her mother and making plans for their fight against the Fire Lord, night had once again fallen on their camp. It had been a long day of training for everyone, formulating battle plans together with Sokka and testing them out on each other. He scheduled breaks and left room for meals, which was nice, but the day went by in an exhausting blur of spars and bending practice. Even Zuko, who took his strict firebending training very seriously in the past, found himself aching in parts of his body.

Once dinner was finished and packed up for the night, a grace period followed, where everyone could relax and bathe and meditate. Zuko had already finished bathing and meditating and was now relaxing inside their tent, spread out over his bed sheets with his arms behind his head. Contemplative, he stared at the ceiling of their small tent, at the hints of moonlight peeking through the tent fabric, wondering when Sokka would return. Last he saw of him, he was moseying his way down to the water to wash up.

Oddly enough, Zuko’s imagination wandered to that of Sokka bathing before he was interrupted by the Water Tribe boy himself. The tent flap nudged open and Sokka slipped right in, dripping wet once again.

A couple of drops of water splattered on Zuko’s bare feet, and his curious gaze fell on Sokka’s face. Their eyes met briefly, but then Sokka flushed and looked away, down at the wet spots on their sheets. “Sorry.”

“It’s nothing.” Zuko replied simply, distracted by something else.

Sokka offered a small chuckle and crawled onto his bed spread, long limbs and all, drying his wet hair with a ruffle of his hand one last time. A drop of water fell from a strand of hair and landed on Sokka’s bare shoulder, Zuko noticed, watching its smooth descent down the length of Sokka’s body, following it trickle down his back before it disappeared into the fabric of his undergarments. That was when Zuko realized his heart was beating so fast.

“Good night,” Sokka said, sliding under the covers, and facing away from him.

“Good night,” Zuko answered, following suit and getting under the covers himself, all the while stealing glimpses at the boy lying next to him.

Zuko was looking at Sokka’s dark skin, somehow always glowing from the limelight of Zuko’s attention, and he wondered how that tan skin would feel under his own fingertips, whether or not it was smooth to the touch. Whatever compelled Zuko to think about those types of things, he would never know. The mind worked in mysterious ways, he decided as he finally got settled into his sheets.

It didn’t help that the tent barely offered any room. Sure, Sokka was a great roommate, but that didn’t change the fact that they were both growing teenage boys, whose minds tended to wander in close proximity with another person. Their bed spreads were right next to each other, with no elbow room in-between, all personal space rendered impersonal. Of course, Sokka always slept facing away from Zuko, while Zuko slept facing away from Sokka. Naturally.

And _naturally_ , Zuko would often toss and turn, sometimes onto his back but more often times he would turn and end up facing Sokka, curious and guilty about doing so. Zuko always reasoned with himself, that he was half-awake and that he was having trouble sleeping, that facing Sokka just felt more comfortable than the other way around. He liked facing this way. Besides, Zuko found that staring at Sokka’s back was oddly relaxing, almost hypnotizing, his bare back all tan and skinny and smooth.

Zuko felt compelled to touch him.

And he usually never went through with that, just wondering innocently and curiously. And maybe some nights, Zuko’s hands would reach out mere inches away from touching, but never actually going for it, of course, but tonight...it actually happened.

It was a fascination, a guilty pleasure that led to bad habits that spiraled out of control. All of a sudden, looking became touching, just pretending to be a handsy sleeper. It was obviously just a fact about himself that Zuko failed to mention beforehand. And a sleeping Sokka was an unconscious Sokka — he didn’t need to know. A light brush of the hand against Sokka’s shoulder, like a feather, down his arm, sliding down his back and around his waist.

Sokka was smooth, his skin incredibly warm to the touch. Zuko realized his hands loved to explore, slowly gaining more confidence in Sokka’s peaceful slumber and finding themselves roaming more and more of his warm skin. His hands were mapping so much uncharted territory, relishing in the smoothness of his skin and how good it felt to touch him. It was somehow so fulfilling, so rewarding, being able to listen unabashedly to his own instincts.

A little less timid now that Zuko had gone this far, he inched a little closer, closing the gap between their bodies. Zuko was almost close enough to press his nose against Sokka’s neck — a thrilling proposition — and his hands reached forward, fingers making the gentlest of strokes down Sokka’s back. One hand went for his side, sliding softly up and down again, appreciating the slight curvature at his hip.

Surrendering to temptation, one hand curiously ventured forward, touching and roaming over Sokka’s stomach. It was slender but firm, with toned muscles resting underneath, hiding under taut skin. Sokka was fit and healthy, and a little slim. Somehow it was wildly appealing to Zuko, who was enjoying this playtime a little too much. In fact, he enjoyed it so much, heat was beginning to gather somewhere down below. His thoughts, dreamlike and half-awake, began to entertain ideas of greater intimacy.

Immediately filled with dread and guilt, Zuko desperately tried to steer his thoughts to something gross, like his uncle’s stinky feet.

But the bubbling desire persisted, as the feeling of Sokka’s body loved to remind him, the desire itching under his skin, his blood pumping through his veins and further south than he would like. Zuko stilled, trying to calm himself, listening to Sokka’s calm breathing and hoping to do the same. But listening to Sokka’s breathing, his skinny body rising and falling with every breath, was suddenly wildly arousing.

Just then, Sokka shifted slightly, startling Zuko and causing a slight panic. As if frozen, Zuko stayed still and let the slumbering Sokka move about as he’d like. Zuko simply watched, petrified with horror at the thought that Sokka could wake up at any given moment, as he unconsciously turned, slightly, his weight moving towards Zuko, and — they were touching — too close, too close, _too close._ Sokka was leaning back, leaning against Zuko, their bodies touching, and Sokka’s backside settling perfectly against Zuko’s frontside.

The pressure between their bodies sent Zuko’s mind to places unknown. This was definitely far beyond what he was expecting from his naughty playtime, far more than he bargained for, absolutely. Zuko wasn’t sure how to handle the situation, seemingly paralyzed by the turn of events. The way Sokka had leaned back, slightly turned, had given Zuko the opportunity to gaze upon his sleeping face.

At the sight of that peaceful face, a new wave of guilt came crashing over Zuko, and he wanted nothing else than to respect their boundaries. But he was trapped, pressed against Sokka’s slim body, and that distinct smell of ice and ocean water, coupled with the heat of that tan body, sent Zuko’s head spinning. He feared that moving in the slightest would wake the Water Tribe boy, terrified of his possible reactions to such an embarrassing predicament.

Zuko was so hard right now.

There was no denying the slight bulge in his pants, currently being suffocated behind Sokka’s perk little butt. Not to mention, a friendly reminder that Sokka only wore his undergarments to bed, meaning the only thing separating Sokka’s bare skin was a thin layer of clothing. And honestly, it was a material that could hardly be considered clothing — it was so thin, like the wrapping he bound his wrists in, how could something like that be the only thing he wore to bed?

Maybe this was nature’s way of punishing Zuko for his wrongdoings? This was torture!

Zuko could feel his arousal, achingly hard under his pants, throbbing against the slight crevice in Sokka’s backside. It must have felt like the most gentle poke, but enough to elicit a noise from the sleeping Sokka, shifting once again.

As he stirred, Zuko’s hips rocked towards him ever so slightly, craving attention and action, grinding gently into Sokka. It was mind blowingly good, the pressure between their two bodies. Subconsciously, Zuko planted a hand on Sokka’s waist to keep him in place as he continued to grind his own hips, slowly and gently. His mind took great pleasure in imagining the parts of Sokka’s body that he couldn’t see, his long skinny back disappearing under the covers.

But Zuko was ripped from his little guilty reverie when suddenly Sokka _moved_ , groaned, and separated himself from Zuko’s grasp, moaning as his eyes fluttered open. “Zuko?”

In that split second, Zuko pulled away from Sokka as if his skin had suddenly turned to lava, because _wow,_ this was a whole new level of _bad._ And Zuko was sure Katara would come crashing into their tent and finally rid the world of him, like she’d always wanted. He felt his panicked heart ready to burst out of his chest at any given moment, and even more sure that Sokka could hear it, beating frantically.

Zuko stayed quiet.

When he didn’t get an answer from the clearly conscious firebender, Sokka tried again and said, “Can’t sleep?”

“Uh, y-yeah…” Zuko eventually replied, panicking on what could possibly be going through Sokka’s mind — was he awake through any of that? Could he have woken up from the friction behind him? Could he feel Zuko’s touches, despite how careful he had been not to be overzealous or overdo it? In retrospect, he was definitely overdoing it. In fact, Zuko knew he was crossing all the lines and boundaries, his heart hammering wildly in his chest.

“That’s rough, buddy.” Sokka gave a cocky grin at his phrasing, before the look on his face softened and he smiled. “But you should try to get some rest. More training and planning ahead of us tomorrow, bright and early. Your dad waits for no one, right?”

A little dumbstruck at the mention of his father, Zuko nodded numbly. “Yeah.”

Eyes falling closed once again, Sokka turned to his side, away from Zuko. “Okay, well, good night again. Go to sleep, Zuko.”

For the rest of the night, the two slept facing away from each other, Zuko shamefully rubbing himself inside his pants in the most discreet way he possibly could. The sound of his clothes rubbing against the sheets from friction as he pumped himself to feel good was quite noticeable in the dead of night, but Zuko was too distracted by his vivid imagination of Sokka’s slim body and the filthy things he’d like to do to it. Instead, he thrusted into his fist in earnest and rode that pleasure high until he finished. It left a mess at the very edge of their tent, and Zuko, cringing with embarrassment, simply picked up the tent fabric and moved it over the mess he left behind. It would dry up by morning, Zuko told himself as he tried desperately to relax and ignore the burning desire to turn around and embrace Sokka’s lithe body again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so embarrassed for Zuko and embarrassed for writing this, I feel bad now lmao!! There will probably be more (just because when I first wrote this, it just kept going for some reason...but I don’t usually write multi-chapter stuff, it stresses me out that it's not all written yet lol) but let’s just say that according to whatever happens next, Sokka wasn’t opposed to any of it LOL
> 
> Talk zukka with me on [ tumblr](http://jhoca.tumblr.com/) or on my [nsfw tumblr blog](http://jhoca-nsfw.tumblr.com/) or on [twitter](https://twitter.com/jhocaaaa) or on [instagram](https://www.instagram.com/jhocaaa/)...the S.S. Zukka is small but mighty!


	2. boy talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do teenage boys talk about...their sexual histories, of course (LMAO)
> 
> I respect their ages so we’re just gonna start off by saying that neither of them have lost their virginity (they’re minors!) because they’re good boys and they were too shy for that (aw)...but they’ve done a lot of making out and maybe had some experience fooling around / handsy action?

The next day was another day of training with Aang, the day divided into sections for each kind of bending. It passed in a blur of practice and frustration for Zuko, especially with the walking reminder of what happened last night — Sokka — whenever he caught a glimpse of him, walking by to mock their jerkbending before returning to his maps and strategies.

Zuko tried to focus all of his attention on Aang, reminding himself of the terrible reality and the gravity of their current situation, while desperately trying to dismiss the memory of Sokka’s smooth skin against his hands — he felt so good. Blood rushed south at the thought, and Zuko immediately berated himself for that, groaning inwardly.

Once nightfall came, Aang exhausted from all of his training and his companions exhausted from training with him, everyone was eager to sleep. Once they managed to forage enough rations, they needed to continue making their way towards the Fire Nation. But right now, with their food supply running low and Appa’s energy depleted, they had a lot of preparations to make before they could fly to their next stop to the Fire Nation.

That night, Sokka returned to their tent later than usual. It was evident he’d made a stop in another tent before coming back to their shared one. Zuko was itching to ask where he had been, but he understood it would have been strange to be interrogative and skeptical of Sokka’s nightly excursions.

“I was with Suki.” Sokka explained in a whisper — the tents were not soundproof, and everyone could easily hear any conversation spoken at a normal volume. When answered with silence, Sokka looked up at Zuko’s face before resuming his task of undressing himself, and then he added, “I could tell by the look on your face, you wanted to ask.”

Zuko watched Sokka in silence, how quickly he undid his bound wrists and boots, how easily those blue robes slid off his shoulders, as well as how easily his trousers dropped to the floor. It was mesmerizing to watch, especially when Sokka bent down to pick up his clothes and tuck them aside for another day. Zuko’s eyes rested on the firm curves of that butt, and traveled up and down the crevice down the middle.

When Zuko flushed with embarrassment, Sokka turned around and smirked at him, whispering excitedly. “Do you wanna know what happened?”

“You guys…kissed,” Zuko ventured, uninterested in the topic of conversation and more interested in the nakedness of his body and what could have happened to it. “A lot? You guys probably touched each other? Did she touch your—”

Flustered by the question, in contrast to all of his bravado just a second ago, Sokka shushed him and whispered back loudly, “Suki’s tent is right next to ours! Don’t be stupid!”

Realizing who accompanied Suki in that tent, Sokka sputtered and added, “And my _sister’s_ in there!” But still feeling the need to share his adventures in the bedroom, and perhaps his newfound superiority on the subject, it was obvious how much Sokka itched to give details.

Sliding closer, he leaned in, his lips just barely brushing against the shell of Zuko’s ear, until his breaths tickled Zuko all the way through to his heart.

“If you wanna talk about stuff like _that_ , whisper like this, okay?” Sokka said softly, both of his hands cupped around his mouth, pressed against Zuko’s ear. It sent shivers down Zuko’s spine, hearing him so close and personal, feeling the heat radiating from his body. Their close proximity seemed to heighten every single one of Zuko’s senses towards him, his heart pounding wildly against his chest. Before Zuko could regain his composure, Sokka interrupted with another whisper, “Do you wanna know what we did?”

Zuko swallowed, hearing his own heartbeat pounding in his ears. His voice raspy and quiet, drowning in the sound of his beating heart, Zuko said, “Sure.”

Now, Zuko already knew about sex and intercourse, having been raised in the Fire Nation palace where they also taught him good manners and courting gestures, for when he matured into a proper man and naturally would be expected to produce an heir. But somehow, hearing the words slip from Sokka’s lips was far more exhilarating to hear, especially at this distance. In the darkness it was nearly impossible to see every detail on Sokka’s face, but Zuko could imagine it all: the excitement in his beautiful blue eyes or the sheen of sweat on his skin. It was hauntingly vivid in Zuko’s mind. Hearing about all of Sokka’s naive adventures in the realm of adulthood and pleasure, Zuko felt hotter than usual.

In short, Sokka’s experiences consisted mostly of deep kisses and passionate makeout sessions, with traveling hands that touched where neither had ever touched before. According to him, being around his own sister and the Avatar made it difficult to do anything overly explicit, however, he and Suki had still managed to fool around _down there_ after their successful rescue mission from the Boiling Rock. It seemed as though Sokka could have been romanticizing the experience a little bit, but it was his first time, and they had such a dramatic reunion — after trials and tribulations of warfare — it only made sense to exaggerate how rewarding it was.

A long but not uncomfortable silence followed, letting the information sink in, before Sokka suddenly asked, “What about you? Anything ever happen with that doom-and-gloom girlfriend of yours?”

“Mai?” Zuko answered dumbly, caught off guard by Sokka’s reversal of the conversation. Well, an exchange of intimate experiences only seemed fair, Zuko supposed. With a sheepish grin, he replied, “Same as you, just…a little different. A lot of awkward fumbling around and laughter. It was embarrassing, but fun.”

It seemed like Sokka wasn’t quite satisfied with that answer, or maybe he wanted to ask something, but was debating on whether or not to ask it. Zuko was quickly filled with dread and anxiety at what he could possibly want to ask and continued with something to fill in the silence, hopefully addressing that unasked question with the answer.

“We didn’t really do much, we were almost always followed around by guards or her friends or worse — my sister.” Zuko grimaced at the memory of Azula, tormenting him and Mai for their childhood crushes on each other. Feeling himself start to blubber about awkwardly thinking about his past, especially things of the intimate nature and all the embarrassing stunts he pulled like the dumb hormonal teenager he used to be — and still was — Zuko began to panic. “A-and, it’s not like, we did anything crazy…we were really careful about it. I didn’t, well, of course I didn’t want to hurt her, and she told me she was tougher than that, but I said — I mean, I wasn’t sure if I hurt her or not, but I think, it seemed like she liked it. I dunno, she laughed at me.”

Sokka sat silently beside him, listening to Zuko’s poorly executed chronicle of his own sexual history, the firebender’s whispering interrupted every so often by his own grimaces and a cringing “uh” or two. And he murmured whenever he grew especially embarrassed or didn’t want to go into too much detail, despite having already gone past that at this point. Sokka bit back an amused smile.

“W-we, we went to Ember Island, it’s kind of a resort. Tropical, kinda? There were a lot of beaches. And — well, anyway — she gave me a… _y’know_ — and that was our first time doing something like that, I don’t know.” Zuko was snowballing out of control, his mouth running a mile a minute, but the boy sitting at his side didn’t stop him. “But it felt really good, like, _really_ good, and I almost, well, I almost — uh… _you know_ , in her mouth, and I-I thought I was going to die, Mai was so mad. And, and I thought, oh, that’s probably the last time we would ever do anything, but, the last time was, um, actually at the Boiling Rock.”

Sokka’s eyes widened and he actually responded, whispering incredulously. “What?! Really?!”

“ _Shhh!_ B-but yeah,” Zuko nodded in confirmation, his cheeks burning hot with embarrassment. “Her uncle was the warden, and it was when we were alone in my cell together — after I ran away, uh, from the Fire Nation because I wanted to join you guys, because I was good, and uh, I left her a letter to tell her I was breaking up with her.” Zuko heard an incredulous gasp from Sokka then.

“And she, well, I thought she was mad at me. Uh, well, she _was_ mad at me — I think she’s still mad at me now — but, I dunno, we kissed and touched each other a little. She was still mad at me, because, well, she threw my letter at me? But uh, yeah, that was the last time we did anything to each other. Because, well, we escaped after that.”

Zuko swallowed, floundering to correct himself. “We — as in, uh, you and me. We escaped from the Boiling Rock.”

Another silence.

“Uh, and — and Suki and your father and that one…guy.” Zuko finally ran out of steam, or rather, had steamed up to the brim with everything that had spilled out of his tattletale lips. For a second, he almost empathized with Azula whenever she used to make fun of him in the past for being so bad at talking and socializing with others. This was a prime example of that, following his failed attempts to appeal to Team Avatar despite hours of rehearsals and inner turmoil. Zuko groaned in frustration and dared to shoot a glimpse at Sokka’s face.

It was hard to discern his expression in the darkness, but Zuko could kind of tell that Sokka wanted to say something, but was holding himself back for some reason. It made Zuko itch beyond reason, dizzy with curiosity, uncontrollably anxious. Zuko wondered if Sokka knew how much of an impact his silence had on him, and that maybe Sokka was doing this on _purpose_ — Zuko hoped not. He was already sitting on pins and needles, even now, just staring in the darkness where Sokka’s face would be, dreading an answer.

Sokka let out a small sigh then, and Zuko tensed up all over again. It seemed like a remorseful sigh. “Do you…miss her?”

“Well, yes, but,” Zuko exhaled. He didn’t realize how he’d been holding his breath. “It’s over now, and we — _I_ — made that very clear back at the Boiling Rock. Like I said, I couldn’t drag her into it.”

There was something peculiar about the atmosphere in their tent, but Zuko couldn’t quite place what it was. He did catch Sokka offering him a small smile, and he felt his heart flutter in his chest. And then it actually skipped when a hand brushed over his own, landing on his knee. Zuko was sitting cross-legged this whole time, and his eyes darted back and forth, from the smile on Sokka’s face to the hand on his knee.

Sokka’s eyes glinted with intrigue, almost imploring something out of Zuko, his gaze begging the question. Sokka swallowed hard, his eyes unyielding, before they hovered down to his hand on Zuko’s knee. “Well, if you ever feel lonely…”

Something was ringing in Zuko’s ears, maybe it was the wild racing of his heart, pounding so hard it reverberated in his ears. Zuko was suddenly obsessed with Sokka’s eyelashes, how they brushed his cheeks whenever they came down to blink. Those eyelashes, short and dark, fluttered against Sokka’s cheeks, like little kisses.

“I can help.” Sokka finished, very quietly.

Zuko was still concentrating on a stray eyelash that had fallen and stuck to his cheek, before he realized Sokka had already moved away from him. It took a moment to register what just happened. In a daze, he watched Sokka dive under his covers and whisper “good night” and finally realized Sokka’s hand was no longer resting nervously on his knee.

_Well, if you ever feel lonely…I can help._

He really said that.

Zuko had trouble sleeping that night. He tossed and turned, tossing and turning Sokka’s words in his mind. He was probably overthinking it, as usual. Sokka probably meant “help” as in, talking, or confiding in him. That was the kind of relationship they had, after all. But still, that wording was so strange — Sokka should’ve made it clear and said, “If you ever feel lonely, you can talk to me.” Because that would have left no room for interpretation, the “help” was clearly more conversation. Nothing beyond that.

However, since Sokka had said _he_ could help, Zuko’s imagination was now running rampant with ideas. Despite having a conversation riddled with sexual experiences with girls, the ideas spiraling out of control in Zuko’s mind involved Sokka — specifically Sokka who was “helping” a “lonely” Zuko.

What kind of “help” did Sokka mean when he said that? “Help” finding a new girlfriend? What did he mean by “lonely”? Why was Zuko thinking so seriously about this?

Besides, Sokka was clearly together with Suki! That should be the first and most obvious fact. Sokka literally just came from Suki’s tent and shared all the juicy details of their makeout sessions, there was no way he had any interest in offering the kind of “help” that Zuko was imagining. Why was he even imagining that?

Did he... _ like _ Sokka? Zuko had never really consciously gone there before, he just thought Sokka’s skin looked really good and nice to touch. The next thing he knew, he was really hard. Did that  _ mean _ anything, though?

All Zuko really cared about was whether or not Sokka was awake through anything he did to him last night. It was just his hands, very gently skimming over Sokka’s body, and maybe a little shameful grinding for just a minute...but it wasn’t  _ that _ bad, was it?

Zuko grimaced to himself and pulled the bed cover over his head. Oh, Spirits, what he did was horrible and creepy, and he never should’ve done any of it! Zuko was the oldest, he was supposed to be mature, to know better. His breaths caused a light spark to ignite, in response to his heated emotions. The air was really hot under his covers, Zuko thought to himself as he breathed heavily.

Suddenly, he felt a little poke on his back.

Startled, Zuko jumped and turned around to face a worried Sokka, creases at his brow.

“Oh, sorry, were you sleeping?” Sokka whispered, his poking finger retreating back to his hand and back under his covers.

“No, not really,” Zuko answered, trying desperately to figure out what Sokka was thinking through those ocean blue eyes. They were so clear, but so difficult to read. “Were you? Did I wake you?”

“No.” Sokka replied, quietly.

A silence followed. In the darkness of night, Zuko couldn’t see clearly, but he thought he saw Sokka bite his bottom lip.

“Hey, um,” Sokka started, awkwardly. Zuko could feel his heart beating in his chest, at a frenzied pace. “I just thought, maybe you didn’t wanna talk about your...experiences. I just, I dunno, I wanted to apologize? I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“What?”

“Earlier,” Sokka explained. “I asked you about Mai. You clearly didn’t want to talk about it, but I made you talk about it, and I’m sorry.”

Zuko furrowed his brows in confusion. “What? Wait, no, it’s fine. I wasn’t — well, I mean — it wasn’t something I really thought I’d tell anybody, but I wasn’t uncomfortable.” Zuko paused. “Not that it was  _ comfortable _ , though?”

“Agh,  _ I knew it! _ Let’s just forget that conversation happened. I’ll wipe it from my memory, okay?” Sokka covered his face with his hands. Zuko thought he looked adorable like that, but he shook it off. “It was a weird thing to ask.”

“You didn’t really ask, I’m pretty sure I just ended up telling you about it…” Zuko mentally groaned at himself. Why  _ did _ he tell Sokka all the nitty-gritty details of his awkward sexual adventures with Mai? Why, oh, why was he like this? “So, don’t beat yourself up about it.”

Sokka uncovered his face slowly, looking up at him from behind his lowered hands — another adorable sight, Zuko thought — and his eyes darted nervously around them.  “It’s just, I can feel you tossing and turning all the time. And you radiate heat like crazy or something? It gets really warm in here. I thought it was coming from you, since, well, it can’t really come from anywhere else…”

Zuko gulped audibly.

“I thought that if you were heating up, you were upset about something?” Sokka continued, “I don’t really know how jerkbending works.”

“Um, well, you’re not totally wrong.” Zuko started. “Firebending is closely tied to emotions. Anger is the most obvious one, but it’s not…the only one. I wouldn’t really say it’s anger, but more like, passion? The fire burns hotter when you feel strongly about something, like remember how I lost my firebending when I first joined you guys?”

Sokka nodded.

“I’d lost my drive, my passion, to capture the Avatar — since I’m on your side now.” Zuko continued, slowly. “But I have firebending again because I have a new purpose that I feel passionate about: to help you guys. Does that make sense at all?”

Sokka nodded again. “So you’re not upset?”

“No,” Zuko shook his head, with a sigh of relief.

“That’s good,” Sokka offered a small smile. “Just making sure.”

Zuko watched Sokka throw his covers off of himself, so everything above his waist was exposed to the air. Zuko’s heart immediately jumped at the sight, and blood rushed south, to his nether regions.

“It’s still really hot in here, though.” Sokka stretched, craning his neck this way and that, exposing smooth skin and every little nook of his collarbone. His blue eyes shifted, his gaze fixed on Zuko as he settled into place, lying comfortably on his side, facing him. Both of his hands were nestled under his cheek, and his face was flushed and coy, almost mischievous. Playful. “But I’m glad it’s not because of anger.”

All of a sudden, Zuko was burning up all over his body. He wished his inner fire would listen to him for once and not give him away so easily. Oh, Spirits, it was so obvious his body and emotions were reacting to everything Sokka was doing. It was enough for Sokka to notice! Zuko wasn’t sure how hot it was in their little tent, he was far too accustomed to hot temperatures as a trained “jerkbender” with years of expertise. If only there were some way to cool down and blow off some of this steam, Zuko mentally reprimanded himself, the heat was probably unbearable for Sokka, who probably didn’t know how to break it to him that he was the cause of this heat and his personal discomfort. And that would make sense, considering their past as enemies.

“Yeah. Not angry.” Zuko tried, awkwardly. “Maybe just a little worked up? About everything.”

“That makes sense.” Sokka answered. “You shouldn’t keep it all bottled up, though.”

Zuko forced his eyes to focus on Sokka’s face, and not the light sheen of sweat all over his torso. He tried to ignore the heat radiating from his own body, and how his own clothes were beginning to suffocate him, trapping the heat. Zuko felt a little dizzy in their sauna-like tent, especially with Sokka treating it like one, talking to him so casually, half naked and all leisurely about everything. Zuko swallowed nervously, tugging at his shirt to give himself a little air.

“If you gotta do your business, do it. I don’t judge.” Sokka raised his hands in confidence. “Everyone does it.”

Zuko froze. “What?”

Sokka blinked back. And then, flushing, he averted his eyes. “Y-you know, to…feel good.”

Something inside Zuko croaked.

A beat of silence passed. And then the air was thick and heavy, full of heat and this newfound awkward tension, it was excruciating. Neither of them could stand to look at the other, just cringing at their words.

Zuko swallowed nervously, and then finally, he fumbled and started awkwardly, “Um, I think I’m going to pass—”

“—yeah, no, that’s fine, that’s a good idea—”

“—I just don’t feel like it? It’s not you—”

“—Yeah, no, don’t worry about it, just forget I even said anything—”

“—Maybe some other time, I don’t know—”

“—No, it’s cool, totally my mistake, I shouldn’t have said that—”

And then eventually, once their overlapping awkward blabber-fest of a conversation died down, it was back to square one: lying on their sides, facing away from each other. But this time, somehow more uncomfortable than before.

It was not a good night’s rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m laughing so hard at Zuko’s thought process because, wow, me too...he’s such an awkward, shy boy ♥ omfg this is so embarrassing and awkward, everything is so embarrassing and awkward, pls send help...
> 
> hey so u like zukka...and I like zukka so...hmu, let’s grab a cup of coffee and talk zukka on [tumblr](http://jhoca.tumblr.com/) or [instagram](https://www.instagram.com/jhocaaa/) or [twitter](https://twitter.com/jhocaaaa)  
> 


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